UPDATE (1:37 PM): Since starting his scholarship Nelly has spoken to Mike Brown’s family. He told Billboard, “I’ve been in contact with the family of Mike Brown, we started a Mike Brown Scholarship Fund in order to send kids to college because Mike did graduate from high school,” he says.

“And even though we all make mistakes, he did have positive things that he wanted to do. And I think it’s important that we expand on what he wanted to do in a positive nature and send, not just kids from his area, but kids from all over who have that mentality onto a better place so we can change the outcome.”

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The ordeal going on in Ferguson, Missouri seems to have the majority of those who have been paying attention to he coverage on edge. After unarmed 18-year-old, Mike Brown, was reportedly executed by a police officer after surrendering with his hands raised, according to witnesses, the people of the city have taken to streets in a weeklong protest. St. Louis resident Nelly recently spoke up on the protests that followed the killing, where a small minority of the residents took the opportunity to loot, saying residents might have jumped the gun with their protest and should have organized better. “I understand the frustration, but we have to strategize before we overreact … We don’t get no do-over on sh-t like this, so we have to do it right the first time,” he told TMZ.

Nelly added that relations between Blacks and the police department have been soiled for a while now, but urged residents to take a proactive stance. “Ain’t nothing happen no different that hasn’t been happening,” he said. “At the end of the day, we should have waited to strategize first and take all the right steps to organize.”

In wake of the ordeal, the rapper plans to start up a scholarship fund in Mike Brown’s name, with contributions already coming in from T.I., Kevin Hart and NBA baller Al Jefferson.